TAXATION OF DAIRY FARMS 3 



in view of the fairly widespread reluctance of qualified people to become inter- 

 ested in government, people fought a war so that they might determine this 

 "degree of concern"; the famous "Taxation without representation is tyranny" 

 exponents. The demand of that day was that in matters of taxation, they at 

 least be heard. That right still exists; the public servant should know it; the 

 citizen should not forget it. The effectiveness of the hearing, however, depends 

 on the knowledge and understanding brought to it. The results of this study- 

 are intended to be an aid in that direction. 



Although we have data only on Property Taxes, we can safely indicate that 

 for most farm owners these have been their largest tax. Income taxes, federal 

 or state; excise taxes; and sales taxes are part of the total tax bill against the 

 farm. Compared with the amount of tax paid by property, they have been in 

 general small. 



Propert}' taxes are worth stud3ing not only for their size but because of the 

 way in which they are determined. It is possible for a tax system to be burden- 

 some, confiscatory, and capriciously unjust. The laws of the land provide safe- 

 guards to protect the taxpayer and rules for the guidance of the tax officials. 

 Despite the regulations, the basic element in the tax bill — the valuation of the 

 property — continues to be a matter of judgment. To be sure the law in Massachu- 

 setts reads — "The assessors of each city and town shall at the time appointed 

 therefor make a fair cash valuation of all the estate, real and personal, subject 

 to taxation therein . . . "^ But after having the law someone had to interpret 

 it; especially the meaning of "fair cash valuation." Inevitably, in this land 

 known throughout the world for its sharp traders, greater precision was needed 

 in the wording of the law. Justice Holmes brought his wisdom to bear on the 

 point in 1892 by ruling that — "The cash value of an article is the amount of 

 cash for which it will exchange in fact."* This at least narrowed down the 

 interpretation so far as non-real property was concerned. 



In 1919 the court declared: "Fair cash value of land for purposes of taxation 

 is ascertained by a consideration of all those elements which make it attractive 

 for valuable use to one under no compulsion to purchase but willing to buy for a 

 fair price, attributing to each element of value the amount which it adds to the 

 price likely to be offered by such a buyer."* 



The court decisions are of little help in the annual task of the assessor. The 

 routine task of annually checking farm property does not rest on precise defini- 

 tions. The law has provided a foundation on which the assessor builds his 

 valuations. The amounts do not vary much from year to year. Judgment is 

 the assessor's best tool and judgment is a subjective quality. 



Even after allowing for a high level of common sense among the assesors, the 

 present system has permitted a great deal of variation in the valuation of real 

 and personal property throughout Massachusetts. This despite the law which 

 enables the Commissioner of Corporations and Taxation to ". . . visit any town, 

 inspect the work of its assessors and give them such information and require of 

 them such action as will tend to produce uniformity throughout the common- 

 wealth in valuation and assessment. "^ 



The assessors themselves, at the time we were doing the field work, appe'red 

 to be much interested in the valuations in the various towns and a common 

 question of theirs was "What do they value cows or tractors at in that town?" 



■^ Commissioner of Corporations and Taxation, (Chap. 59, Sec. 38, p. 108) Commonwealth of 

 Massachusetts. General laws relating to local taxation (Tercentenary Edition Revised to in- 

 clude 1943 Legislation) Boston 1943. 



' National Bank of Commerce vs New Bedford, 155 Massachusetts 313. 



* Massachusetts General Hospital vs Belmont, 233 Massachusetts 190. 



* Commissioner of Corporations and Taxation, op. cit. Chap. 58, Sec. 1, p. 3. 



